Everything comes off and gets numbered
We take off the doors, drawer fronts and hardware and number every piece so it goes back exactly where it came from. Doors that get swapped around never hang quite right afterwards.
Cabinet refinishing
Kitchen cabinet refinishing in Lakewood Ranch & Sarasota.
Refinishing the cabinets you already have costs a fraction of replacing them, and in most kitchens around here the boxes are in much better shape than the finish makes them look. If they're solid and the layout works for you, what you don't like is usually the color and the wear — and that's something we can fix.
It's also the job where doing it right matters most. Cabinets get touched, wiped and knocked more than anything else in the house, so a finish that wasn't prepped properly starts chipping at the door edges within months. There's no patching that — it has to come back off and start over.
What's covered
What this work includes.
- Doors, drawer fronts, face frames and cabinet boxes
- Kitchen islands, pantry and built-in cabinetry
- Bathroom vanities and laundry-room cabinetry
- Bookcases, built-in shelving and other feature joinery
- Hardware removal and refit, or fitting new hardware you supply
How it's done
The work, in order.
Cleaning off the grease
Every kitchen has a film of cooking grease on the cabinets, worst around the stove — you usually can't see it, but paint won't stick to it. We degrease everything, then sand off the shine so the primer has something to grab.
The right primer for your cabinets
Thermofoil, laminate, oak and already-painted wood each need a different primer. This is the one decision that makes or breaks how long the finish lasts, and it's the step that gets skipped most often because you can't see it once the job's done.
Filling and sanding
Dings and old handle holes get filled. If you have oak, the grain will show through the paint unless we fill and sand it flat first — some folks like that texture and some don't expect it, so it's worth deciding together up front.
Sprayed, not brushed
We spray the doors and drawer fronts rather than brushing them in place, and sand lightly between coats. You can spot a brushed cabinet door from across the room — sprayed, it looks new.
Letting it harden before we hang them
Cabinet finishes can be handled fairly quickly but keep hardening for a while after that. We'll hang the doors once they're safe to handle and tell you when you can go back to normal — stacking dishes against a finish that hasn't hardened is how the first chips happen.
Common problems
What people call us about.
Peeling at the door edges and around handles
Almost always means the last coat went on over grease or a shiny factory finish without proper cleaning and priming. Touching it up won't hold — those spots need taking back and building up again.
Yellowed or ambered white cabinets
Some older white finishes turn yellow over the years, worst where the daylight hits. It's the old finish itself, not dirt, so cleaning won't touch it. Refinishing will.
Sticky or tacky surfaces long after painting
Usually wall paint that got used on cabinets. Wall paint is made to stay a little soft so it can flex — cabinets need something that actually hardens.
Doors that stick or no longer close flush
Usually paint built up around the hinges from a previous job done without taking the doors off. Easy to put right while everything is off anyway.
What to expect
Timing, and living with the work.
How long it takes
A typical kitchen runs several days to a couple of weeks depending on door count, substrate and how much filling is needed — the drying and curing between coats sets the pace more than the painting does. You get a realistic range in the written estimate, based on your kitchen rather than an average.
While we're working
The kitchen stays usable for most of the job. Doors and drawer fronts leave for finishing, so you have open shelving and working drawers in the meantime; boxes and face frames are done in place with the surrounding area masked and protected. The disruptive stretch is short, and we will tell you which days it falls on before we start.
FAQ
Cabinet refinishing questions.
Is refinishing cheaper than replacing cabinets?
Substantially, in most kitchens — you are paying for labor and materials rather than new casework, countertop removal and installation. It only stops making sense when the boxes themselves are failing, the layout needs changing, or water damage has gone into the carcass. We will say so at the walkthrough if that is what we find.
Can you refinish thermofoil or laminate cabinets?
Usually yes, with the right bonding primer — these surfaces are non-porous, so adhesion depends entirely on preparation and primer choice. Where thermofoil has already lifted or peeled away from the substrate, that door needs replacing rather than refinishing; a lifted edge cannot be painted back down.
Will the grain still show through on oak cabinets?
Only if you want it to. Open-grain oak shows its texture through paint unless the grain is filled and sanded flat first. That is extra work, so it is a decision worth making up front — some people like the character, others expect a modern flat finish and are disappointed to see grain in it.
How soon can we use the kitchen normally again?
Doors go back on once the finish can be handled safely, but cabinet coatings keep hardening for a while after that. We will tell you when yours is ready for normal use, including stacking things against the interiors — early heavy use is the most common cause of first-year chipping.
Do you spray or brush cabinets?
Doors and drawer fronts are sprayed, which is what gives a cabinet its smooth, factory-like surface. Face frames and boxes are done in place with the area masked off. A brushed cabinet door is visible as a repaint from across the room.
Our promises
What you can hold us to — in writing, on every job.
Written price, held
You get a clear written quote after the walkthrough, and that is the number you pay. Scope changes only ever happen with your say-so, in writing.
Clean at the end of every day
Floors and furniture protected, drips caught, site tidied before we leave — not just on the last day, but every day we're in your home.
Walkthrough before final payment
We walk the finished job together and fix anything you point out before you settle up. The job isn't done until you say it is.
Coatings picked for this climate
Sun, humidity, and salt air decide how long a finish lasts here. We specify weather-rated, low-VOC products chosen for the Gulf Coast, not whatever's cheapest.
If you are weighing refinishing against replacement, the walkthrough is the fastest way to settle it. We will look at the boxes, the doors and the current finish and tell you plainly which one your kitchen justifies — including when the answer is replacement.
Worth a read before you decide:
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